[SuprMover]

My fuel economy ranges from 16.2 mpg in mixed city/highway driving to 20.2 mpg all highway 65 mph with about 1000 lb of payload. Unless the diesel gets significantly higher numbers, I think the 3.7L is a great choice

 

[star gazer]

Just wondering if you have done any trips at 70mph and how much it drops?

thanks for the reports!

Dean

 

[SuprMover]

I completed a 400 mile trip where I averaged 70-75 mph for the trip. I had about 1500 lbs of cargo and the result was 17.7 mpg. The van also had 650 miles on it, so the mileage may increase a bit now that it's broken in

 

[Chance]

My fuel economy ranges from 16.2 mpg in mixed city/highway driving to 20.2 mpg all highway 65 mph with about 1000 lb of payload. Unless the diesel gets significantly higher numbers, I think the 3.7L is a great choice

That's great mileage for the standard 3.7L V6. As I recall yours is the T250 with mid roof and long wheelbase. Is that correct? And do you have the 3.73 or 4.10 gears? Not sure if both are available in you model or what difference it would make.

 

[star gazer]

That is not bad at all, my F250 PSD will not do any better than that. I wonder how much my small 3000lb fiber glass trailer would hurt it?

Chance, I saw in a previous thread he has the 3.73.

Dean

 

[Huntertek]

I have the mid roof 3.7 and have over 3100 miles. 80% hwy/interstate 20% city. i have not got any better than 15.2 mpg. Thats where i stand now and that is with at least 1500lbs payload. Also have 3.73 gears. I'm finding out I get better mileage leaving it out of 6th gear.
Because when i have it in Drive with all gears that between 5th and 6th its always switching back and forth thus using more fuel. Its very aggravating so I just manually put it in 5th where it stays. If the highways stayed level or down hill 6th gear would be fine but any slight incline will cause these 3.7's with any load will search gears like crazy. Also advise you guys getting the duel rear wheels because driving with any wind or getting behind a truck gets very squirrely, lots of body roll.

 

[orton]

Thanks for the report. I have looked under every Transit that I have found and none have a rear sway bar. I suspect they will be available in the aftermarket so that may help your body roll situation.

 

[VanMan]

There was a low roof LWB T350 xlt wagon in my city on labor day. It had M-plates on it and had a rear sway bar. I was not able to talk to him/her about it. Also had the alum. wheels,ecoboost, full house....

 

[orton]

There was a low roof LWB T350 xlt wagon in my city on labor day. It had M-plates on it and had a rear sway bar. I was not able to talk to him/her about it. Also had the alum. wheels,ecoboost, full house....

I thought maybe the 350 included a sway bar. Not all because the local dealer has a 350 cargo and it does not have a sway bar. Maybe passenger vans only?

Do know that the addition of a 1 1/8" Roadmaster aftermarket rear bar improved the sway and handling on my 08 Sprinter. Bar replaced the stock 5/8" dia. bar.

 

[VanMan]

Alot of Ford engineers live by me so I see stuff with M-plates all the time.
If anything the factory wagon bar could be put on the Cargo.
With as many combos the Transit will have, I will mix and match factory parts to get what I want.

5/8" bar is small, your change must have made a big difference

 

[orton]

Alot of Ford engineers live by me so I see stuff with M-plates all the time.
If anything the factory wagon bar could be put on the Cargo.
With as many combos the Transit will have, I will mix and match factory parts to get what I want.

5/8" bar is small, your change must have made a big difference

Change was very noticeable. Biggest change was the feel of the front end. Handling improved, wind movement improved but the pitching when entering a driveway diagonally did not improve. Hope the different front suspension design on the Transit will improve that. Also the two leaf rear springs may be an improvement over the Sprinter single leaf. We will see.

 

[PeterR]

Huntertek, on another thread reference was made to the new transmission "learning" the driver's driving patterns, and becoming smoother as a result. Does your owners manual describe this process, and is there any chance that you can teach your tranny to act differently at those higher speeds? Thanks.

 

[VanMan]

The "vehicle" learns how YOU drive it, nothing in the manual for this. The ECU or the engine/trans watches how YOU operate thru the throttle position sensor (gas pedal)and speeds. Example:
we drive 5 oh GT mustangs, run them hard/fast, the ECU see the TPS going full scale and the speed high, the injector duty cycle goes up, timing advances as far as it can go without knocking.
Now YOU are driving a van, if you are towing? do you floor it all the way up?
If not, the trans starts to shift smoother because you are not LOADING the engine/trans to the max.
Disconnect the battery power and the ECU has to learn YOU again.

 

[PeterR]

Thanks VanMan, would you expect Huntertek's transmission to improve the shifting he describes in 5th and 6th gear? [" . . . search gears like crazy . . . "] Thanks.

It seems weird that this feature is not described in the owner's manual, doesn't it? How would one know to disconnect the battery to start the learning process all over?

A search of the Internet does yield further information such as:

_________________________________________________
[quoted material]:

Ford's letter regarding the "PowerShift 6 Speed Operating Characteristics"
After I scheduled my appointment with a ford dealer in TX, ford customer service sent this electronic letter to me...Sooo my understanding is that this car is built to make all kinds of weird noises.

PowerShift 6 Speed Operating Characteristics
Background
In 2010, Ford launched an all new transmission, PowerShift, an advanced six-speed automatic transmission based on manual transmission technology with class-leading fuel efficiency. This communication will help explain the technology and common operating characteristics of this new transmission found on the Fiesta and Focus in order to improve customer expectations and
experiences. PowerShift is an advanced automatic transmission technology
The PowerShift is really like two 3-speed manual transmissions put together, with the dual clutch and shifting components controlled electronically. Since most of the components are derived from a manual transmission, the PowerShift transmission will drive, sound, and feel like a manual transmission but without the driver interaction.

Service Personnel Support
Since PowerShift Transmission is a new technology, some customers might not be familiar with the normal driving characteristics of this transmission. Service support personnel should be aware of the normal operating characteristics and be able to differentiate between normal characteristics and abnormal symptoms that require service. The following information will
assist with addressing certain potential customer concerns.

[snip -- quote ends]
________________________________________

http://www.focusfanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=306863


FYI -- Not sure if this is the same transmission as in the Transit.

 

[PeterR]

"Ford 6 speed transmission adaptive learning" is a good search term for further information.

 

[Longboard]

Now I wonder if the EL has anything different back there to make up for the huge overhang.

 

[Chance]

.......cut.......

FYI -- Not sure if this is the same transmission as in the Transit.

The transmission described above sounds like a dual-clutch automated manual and therefore very different than the 6R80 in the Transit which is based on planetary gears and a torque converter.

Having said that I'm not sure it makes much difference in the context of this "learning" process by either transmission. I personally view the transmission as not learning anything but rather adapting it's shifting program based on driver habits. I think the software is already in the transmission and shift variables are selected based on driver input. I guess some people would call that learning but I don't view the transmission as having artificial intelligence or anything similar.

Beyond that I don't see the benefit of unplugging the battery so the transmission resets to initial program. For that matter I'm not sure it would have to reset at all considering data may be saved without need for electrical power.

 

[star gazer]

Hope they have learned something since then??

Good to hear it is a different transmission then.

 

[SuprMover]

6R80 does learn how to shift

I just crossed 2000 miles today, and the shift schedule has changed significantly since I purchased the vehicle. On small inclines, the torque converter will unlock in Drive but stay in 6th gear. Early on, it would keep the converter locked but drop a gear. Also the torque converter clutch applies at a higher speed than before. Overall I think it has improved. Due to the rev-happy nature of the engine, it never feels happy below 2000 rpm, which is where the transmission attempts to keep engine speed. Perhaps Ford should actually make "truck" motors that keep the powerband between 1800-4000 rpm, rather than a detuned Mustang motor...

 

[Huntertek]

Your right suprmover. It's not happy below 2000rpm's with a load anyway. Just not enough torque. I can live with keeping it in 5th just wish I could keep it locked into 5th without having to manually change it every time I switch from park. My main concern now is the body roll I have. You guys have my attention now about upgrading to a sway bar (or bigger sway bar). I haven't looked to see if it even has one. It sure does not act like it. Maybe a after market lowering kit with sport suspension . Seriously I don't know how this van passed the body roll safety test on the test track. Guess they did not load (racks with weight in them) the van as theses were designed for before the body tool test. And just to let you know I'm not loaded anymore than I was in my E250.